What Gary Caldwell, Ruaidhri Higgins and Conor Hourihane have all said about Wigan Athletic job | OneFootball

Gary Caldwell, Ruaidhri Higgins and Conor Hourihane have all been linked with the Wigan Athletic managerial vacancy.

Gary Caldwell, Conor Hourihane, and Ruaidhri Higgins have all addressed links to the Wigan Athletic managerial vacancy.

The Latics sacked former head coach Ryan Lowe following their 6-1 defeat at Peterborough United last Saturday, and went on to lose 2-1 to Reading on Tuesday under the interim management of Glenn Whelan.

Wigan are currently preparing for Sunday's tricky FA Cup fourth round tie against Premier League leaders Arsenal.

Appointing either Caldwell or Hourihane would see the Latics poach their new boss from League One rivals Exeter City or Barnsley, respectively, whereas Higgins currently manages Northern Irish side Coleraine.

Wigan's next boss will have a challenging job to keep the Greater Manchester outfit in the third tier, as they currently sit in the drop zone with 16 league fixtures remaining.

Pete O'Rourke reported this week via X that Higgins was in the frame to become the next Latics boss.

However, speaking to BBC Sport, the 41-year-old said: "I'm in this job six or seven months. I have a brilliant owner, brilliant chief exec, brilliant staff and brilliant players. The club is going in the right direction, and I'm so happy here, the happiest I have been in a long time.

"You don't really expect it (the links to Wigan), but my full focus is on this football club and how we fulfil our potential. There's nothing to report on that whatsoever."

Meanwhile, Barnsley boss Hourihane told BBC Radio Sheffield's Football Heaven show: "I know I’ve got a job on hand here for the foreseeable, very committed to it", which would imply that he is not keen on moving clubs any time soon.

In contrast, Exeter's Caldwell told BBC Radio Devon: "The Wigan job's up, so I'd like to think the success that we've had would put us in for that.

"I had my board meeting this morning. I trained again today with the players. We'll do it again tomorrow, and my full focus is on Saturday. I've been busy this week, working, preparing."

The former Scotland defender's comments seemingly indicate that he thinks highly of the Latics, who he played for in the Premier League, returning as manager to win the League One title in 2016.

Gary Caldwell would need to enjoy strong start upon potential Wigan Athletic return

As previously mentioned, the ex-Latics boss retains a strong affinity with the Greater Manchester outfit, while he also remains a firm favourite among many supporters.

Many Wigan fans felt as though the recently sacked Lowe didn't buy into their club as much as he could have done, which is not an allegation that can be levelled at Caldwell.

However, Caldwell utilises a back three at Exeter, which is the same system Lowe instilled at the Brick Community Stadium, and it seldom yielded positive results.

If the 43-year-old returns to the North West and continues with his current philosophy, he will need to earn victories quickly to get supporters onside.

The Latics are in serious relegation danger, while Caldwell's potential first game in charge may come as soon as the upcoming visit of Luton Town on Wednesday.